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Interesting Questions, Facts and Information
- There are a total of 50 general entries. We are selecting 30 for display.
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 Interesting Questions, Facts, and Information
 HMS Victory
| The year is 1805. England's last war ended in 1802. She's been at war with France again since May 1803. George III is King. You never planned on being a sailor, yet here you are, a member of the crew aboard HMS Victory. You didn't volunteer, you were ____? | Ahoy Matey, Life aboard Man-O-War, HMS Victory #1
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Pressed. The British Navy had trouble recruiting new sailors, especially in wartime. A press gang was a group of 8 to 12 sailors that was sent into a port to "persuade" likely candidates to enlist, (you were going with them whether you wanted to or not). "Scuttle" has several different meanings, 1. an entrance with a hatch between ship decks,(or wall or roof of a house), 2. to sink a vessel on purpose, 3. a wide mouthed container for holding coal, 4. to move about hurriedly. A scuttlebutt was a tub of drinking water with a tin mug chained to it. The scuttlebutt was the 1800's version of the office water cooler. A scallywag was an American civil war term for a deceitful, white, southern scoundrel.
You're a sailor in the Royal Navy. A "blue" was a soldier's slang name for a sailor and "the Andrew" or Royal Navy, comes from an over zealous press gang officer, Andrew Miller, who was said to have pressed so many men that it wasn't the Royal Navy but his navy.
63,176 Pounds (1765 pounds). In 1765, a laborer made about 6 shillings for a 10 to 12 hour day, or a little less than 100 pounds a year.
| The facts and figures question ... 226.5 feet long, hull 2 feet thick and main mast over 20 stories high at the waterline, 3500 tonnage displacement, 26 miles of rigging, 37 sails and another 23 spare sails for 6,510 square yards of sails, 104 cannons, (21 Oct. 1805) ...ENOUGH ALREADY! ... Approximately 6,000 trees were used to make the Victory. That's how many acres of woodland? | Ahoy Matey, Life aboard Man-O-War, HMS Victory #1
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100 acres. 90% of the lumber used to make Victory was oak. Oak, elm and fir were used for the hull. Fir, pine and spruce were used for the masts and yards. A giant piece of teak, a very hard tropical wood, 150 feet long and 20 inches square, was used for the keel.
Thomas Masterman Hardy. Thomas Masterman Hardy was the 18th Captain of HMS Victory since she was commissioned in 1778. Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson, the 16th Admiral to choose HMS Victory as his flagship, (sinced she was commissioned in 1778) was the Commander-in-Chief of the entire English fleet of 27 ships, (Oct. 1805). Lieutenant William Bligh was in command of the HMS Bounty, when, on April 28th, 1789, Master's Mate Fletcher Christian and 25 crewmembers mutinied. Bligh and 18 of his supporters, adrift in a 23 foot launch, sailed 3618 miles back to civilization. James T. Kirk, was, (will be?), Captain of the Starship Enterprise.
821. 9 commissiond officers, 98 non-commissioned and warrant officers, midshipmen and petty officers, 43 supply, supernumeraries and Admiral's retinue, 492 landsmen, able and ordinary seaman, 31 boys,(1st, 2nd and 3rd class) plus 135 marines led by 11 officers and non-commissioned officers.
| Okay, now you've gotta name ALL the crew ... alphabetically ... Hmmmm, I see that's caused quite a bit of grumblin' out there. Okay then ... How old was the youngest crew member aboard HMS Victory in Oct. 1805? | Ahoy Matey, Life aboard Man-O-War, HMS Victory #1
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12. Thomas Twitchet was 12 years old in Oct.1805. Samuel Robbins was 13. William Huchinson was 14. James Ludford was 15. There were a total of 31 boys aboard, the oldest being 19 year old George Smith. In some cases, a boy was a 'young gentleman apprentice', hoping to become an officer himself. These boys acted as servants to the officers. Commissioned officers were entitled to 1 or 2 servants. The captain was allowed 4 servants for every 100 members of the ship's crew. There were 21 midshipmen aboard, young naval officers in training. Some boys were "powder monkeys" ,the 6th member of a 6 man gun crew, who rushed dangerous gunpowder cartridges from the handling chamber deep inside the ship, back to their guns. During battle, all nonessential crew, including any women aboard, helped with this task.
67. Walter Burke was a 67 year old purser warrant officer. William Russell was a 59 year old AB,(able seaman). William Mitchell was a 56 year old AB. There were at least 11 crew members 50 years of age or older. Nelson was 47 years old in Oct. 1805.
8. HMS Victory had a total of 8 decks. It was called a 3 decker because most of her guns were on those 3 decks. Starting at the bottom, (1) the hold - the warehouse of the ship where food, drink, cannonballs, sails, supplies, etc. were stored ... very dark and smelly. (2) The orlop deck ... got its name from a Dutch word meaning to "overlap" because it overlapped the hold. Used for storage and offices for crew, such as the purser and carpenter, that needed access to the hold. (3) The lower deck - the lowest gun deck. Along each side were fifteen 32-pounder guns (because they fired 32 pound cannonballs about the size of coconuts. Sailors hung their hammocks between the beams of this deck, but not during battles. The ship's manger, where pigs and cows were kept, was also here, (for the captain's dinners). (4) The middle deck ... fourteen 24-pounder guns here. Many sailors slept here. The kitchen (galley) was here and at the stern were the officer's cabins and wardroom. (5) The upper gun deck with fifteen 24-pounders along each side but this deck was open to the weather in the middle. Three of the ship's small boats sat on cradles that were over the open space in the middle. The admiral had his day cabin here. (6) The forecastle ... the raised deck at the bow. Four guns here, 2 carronades or "smashers", used for short range heavy shot and 2 huge 68-pounder carronades. Many of the ships sails were controlled from here. (7) The quaterdeck - at the stern of the ship. Normally reserved for the officers. The captain slept in a cabin at the stern of this deck. Here the captain had a good view. The steering wheels were on this deck, underneath the poop deck. (8) Finally, the poop deck, the highest deck on the ship. There weren't any cannons on this deck. Used mainly by officers and the signal lieutenant, who hoisted his flags to signal other ships.
The cook. The cook was often nickmaned "Slushy" after the 'slush' (yellow grease), that floated on top of the pan in which the fatty, salt meat was cooked. The cook often sold slush to the crew who would spread it on their biscuits,(hard tack). The butter which the navy supplied was often rancid. The cook was often one legged, ("pegged legged"), as it was one of the few jobs a disabled sailor could do. The cook and his mates started their day at 5:30 AM. A cook (at 1 pound, 14 shillings and 6 pence per lunar month), got paid slightly more than an able seaman(at 1-13-6), but less than the captain's clerk (at 2-18-0) or the carpenter (at 3-1-0). (These figures are from 1815).
Disease. By far, the biggest threat to a sailor's life aboard a Man-O-War was disease. As many as 40 seamen died from disease for every 1 killed in battle. Conditions had improved since Vasco da Gama's day, when he lost more than three-quarters of his 170 men, in 1499, to scurvy. In one year, out of 12,109 English sailors, 1,518 died from disease and another 350 became invalids. Tropical waters were the worst places to sail to. The worst year for disease fatalities was 1726, when Admiral Hosier's expedition lost 4,000 men out of 4,750. Sir Gilbert Blane, who was physician to the fleet, recommended lemon juice in 1793 to combat scurvy. By 1800 it was almost completely eradicated except on very long voyages.
Maggots. Ship's biscuits or hard tack were baked three times to completely dry them out and perserve them for up to five years. Insects found it hard to get at the soft center unless the biscuits got damp. If damp, and in hot and humid weather, the biscuits could become infested with maggots, the larvae of the cadelle beetle, tenebroides mauritanicus, up to 20mm long. A dead fish was placed on top of the buscuit sack so that the maggots would crawl onto the fish instead. Fish were replaced on top of the sack as long as maggots covered it. There were "weevils" also, not true weevils but a relative of the woodworm called the bread beetle, stegobium paiceum, which if present in large enough numbers could eat out the centers of bread so that they would crumble to dust. Apparently they tasted quite bitter. Sailors perferred to eat their hard tack in their hammocks after dark. Overall however, sailors ate better than the civillians back home. The Admiralty generally tried to honor it's stated policy that the navy "should be supplied with the best of everything in it's kind. A "short ration allowance" was issued when the standard rations or equivalents could not be issued. To quote Samuel Pepys, "Englishmen, and more especially seamen, love their bellies above anything else and therefore it must always be remembered in the management of victualling of the navy that to make any abatement in the quality or the agreeableness of the victuals is to discourage and provoke them in the tenderest point, and will sooner rend them disgusted with the King's service than any other hardship that can be put upon them."
| The newest officer or midshipman had to propose a specific toast that changed with each day of the week. If he forgot the toast he was to buy drinks for all those present. What was Tuesday's toast? | Ahoy Matey, Life aboard Man-O-War, HMS Victory #1
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"Our men.". Monday's toast was "Our ships at sea." Wednesday's was "Ourselves ... as no one else is likely to concern themselves with our welfare." Thursday's was "A bloody war" or "A sickly season." Friday's was "A willing foe and sea room." Saturday's was "Sweethearts and wives. May they never meet." Sunday's was "Absent friends."
7:00 AM. Usually 6 bells or 7:00 AM was the start of most of the crew's day. The boatswains mates blew their boatswain's whistles and calling "All hands ahoy." Followed by "Up all hammocks ahoy." Seamen who were slow to respond had their hammocks cut down with them still inside. Bells were rung so the crew would know what time it was. Two sandglasses were used, a 4 hour and a half hour glass. At the start of a watch, both glasses would be turned. When the half hour ran out, a bell on the forecastle would be struck once and the glass restarted. When it ran out again it was restarted and the bell rang twice. This continued until 8 bells, or when the 4 hour glass was turned, marking the end of a watch. Half hour sandglasses were still in use in the Royal Navy in 1850. It was not uncommon to express time in "glasses" - 4 and a half glasses meant two and a half hours.
12:00 Midday. Midday was when the ship's speed and the sun's altitude would be ascertained. The master, master's mate and midshipmen would use their sextants and quadrants to estimate the sun's highest point in the sky. The clock would then be put back or forward and the ship's day would start.
It's 11:00 am, so it must be punishments for serious offences.. The boatswain mates tied the offender to a grating and took turns flogging with a whip, made by the victim,(later it was a standard whip). "A cat of nine tails" was a length of rope that was unraveled and fastened to a handle. The captain determined the number of lashes. All crew member were present as awarning to all. Boys were beaten with a cane instead.
A whip. Naval slang for "letting the cat out of the bag" meant the secert is out". "Room to swing a cat" meant the space required for any particular job. The knotted cat of nine tails was kept in a red blaize bag until the offender was securely tied to a grating and there was no hope of a reprieve. A test was done with an exact replica of a cat of nine tails, swung by a 150 pound man, of average build on various pieces of knot free pine. A three quarter inch by three quarter inch piece broken into 3 bits on the first blow. A 1 inch by 1 inch on the second blow. Ouch!
His right arm. A Spanish musketball passed through Nelson's right arm, a little above the elbow, severing an artery. His arm was immediately amputated. Nelson's arm is rumored to be kept behind the altar at the Cathedral in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria. If you're not sick of 1800's naval trivia yet and would like to know whatever happened to Nelson and the Victory, you can always play Part 2 of this quiz. Thanks for playing.
| The year is still 1805. You miss your home and loved ones. Life aboard a Man-O-War isn't a pleasure cruise. England has been at war with France since May 1803. Now she's also at war with what other country? | Ahoy Matey, Life aboard Man-O-War, HMS Victory #2
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Spain. Spain was already a sympathizer with France and became an ally in 1804, adding 32 ships of the line. The Dutch fleet was also arrayed against the Royal Navy. Austria and Russia were allies of England, and Prussia was neutral in 1805. The American Revolution ended in 1783, and the War of 1812 was still in the future. Prussia was not at war in 1805.
Bowmen of a launch or cutter (oarsmen of a small boat). The bowmen of the launch or cutter, the sailors that manned an oar in one of the small boats, were the most easily spared members of a ship's crew. It was the bowmen who hauled condemned men to the yardarm to be executed. The ship's most undesirable members were given the bows oar duty. By having them involved in executions, they were warned what could happen to them. Being the coxswain and oarsmen of the Admiral's barge, on the other hand, was an honor as these men were handpicked.
An opening in the platform halfway up a mast.. A lubber's - another name for a landsman or rookie - hole was in the fighting platform halfway up a mast. Experienced seamen clambered onto the platform over the outside edge. Those feeling insecure used the lubber's hole next to the mast. From the fighting platform sailors could continue climbing aloft, or in times of battle, marines would be stationed there as sharpshooters.
Ship worms. Ship worms, tendeos or "termites of the sea" (teredo navalis) or "cappanus" as seamen called them, aren't worms but marine mollusks similar to clams, that bore into wood. The holes get bigger as the ship worm grows. Ship worms could eat out the bottom of a vessel in a few weeks. Gribbles or 'roly polies' (limnoria lignorum) are marine animals that are related to the terrestrial pill bugs, and also eat wood. Before copper sheets were introduced, broad headed iron nails (filling a ship's bottom) lead sheets and thin wooden sheathing, were used to protect wooden hulls against marine borers. Barnacles slow a ship down and reduce maneuverability.
A chain pump. A chain pump was the most powerful form of older pump. Leather washers were attached to a looped chain that sucked water out of the bilges into a "pump dale" or wooden gully that crossed the gun deck and back to the sea. If struck by a cannonball below the waterline, the pumps had to be manned night and day until the carpenter could fix the hole. Two men could pump out a ton of water in 55 seconds. An elm tree pump, bored from an elm tree trunk, brought water up from under the ship, near the keel. This water was used to put out fires and for cleaning.
720.54 tonnes (aprox.). 304.8 tonnes of fresh water, 121.9 tonnes of cannonballs, 50.8 tonnes of beer, 50.8 tonnes of fuel for galley stove, 45.7 tonnes of biscuits, 35.6 tonnes of gunpowder, 30.5 tonnes each of salt pork and salt beef, 20.3 tonnes of spare lumber, 15.24 tonnes of dried peas, 10.2 tonnes of flour and 2.1 tonnes each of butter and cheese.
Soldiers. Seamen called soldiers "grabbies". I`ve tried to find out why - your guess is as good as mine. Marines were also called "Cheeks", because of the tails of their coats. They were granted the title "Royal" in 1802. Marines were stationed on ships to shoot at and board enemy vessels, also to maintain order, guard duty and enforce disicpline aboard their own ships. Marines were sometimes used for press gang duty. They were paid 1 pound, 8 shillings, 0 pence per lunar month, the same as per the army. While at sea the only recieved 19 shillings, 3 pence to take into account their free room and board. There were 146 marines from the Chatham division aboard HMS Victory in Oct. 1805, commanded by Captain Charles Adair. There were 3 Lieutenants, 7 Noncommissioned officers, 132 Privates, 2 Drummers and 1 Trumpeter.
Played music and sang sea chanteys.. A chanteyman played a fiddle or other musical instrument and sang sea chanteys (work songs) that had a very strong beat that the crew would work to. They would heave on the beat, especially when hauling up the anchors. The chanteyman would make up songs as he went along, often rude ones about an officer and the crew would sing the chorus. This was one of the few job that a one legged sailor could preform.
Aloft, in the rigging.. "Away aloft" sent the best hands high up into the rigging, loosing sails, ("Let fall"), or furling sails. Furled a sail neatly was difficult and dangerous to do quickly, especially in poor weather and was visible to everyone in the fleet. Sails were unfurled first at the yardarm - the tips of the yard (the wooden horizontal beam that the sail hangs from), and only then at the "bunt" or middle. If the bunt was loosened first,the sail would fill with wind too soon and rise above the yard, easily knocking off seamen at the yardarm. A fall from high up in the rigging usually meant death or very serious injuries. Safety nets and harnesses weren't used. "Waisters" were crew members that worked in the "waist of the ship" and implied less experience or abilities. Rookie crew members killed and trapped rats deep within the ship's hold - just one of their fun and stimulating pastimes.
6. Six sailors made up a six-man gun crew, who were known by numbers, thereby simplifying orders. #1 The gun captain, primed, aimed and fired the cannon. He wasn't an officer but a rating and not a member of the gunner's crew, (the gunner, gunner's mate, amourer,etc. aboard ship). #2 Raised and turned the cannon's barrel. #3 Loaded the cannon. #4 Damped down sparks before reloading. #5 Helped move the cannon's barrel and passed ammunition. #6 Was the 'powder monkey', often a boy or sometimes a woman, who fetched fresh ammunition from the handling chamber deep within the ship's hold.
A ship on the verge of a mutiny.. "Shot rolling ships" were often ships whose Captains had ordered too many punishments. Cannonballs were rolled along decks by discontented crews in an effort to knock unwary officers off their feet.
Raising the anchors.. The huge anchor cable was made of hemp which was extremely heavy when it became wet. The crew used a gaint capstan or winch with heavy wooden capstan bars to haul in an anchor. The anchor cable was stored on a special slatted floor that allowed air to circulate and water to drain off it into the bilges.
To hide their palms which were blackened with tar from ropes.. In Nelson's time seamen showed superior officers respect by uncovering their heads. Queen Victoria introduced saluting with the hand to the Navy.
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